Thank you for the shout-out! My week has been okay. Iām still standing on the treadmill as I type this. My cholesterol and so forth are currently in the gutter. Iām still processing those lab results and trying just to move each day :).
Hi Margaret!! On my gosh, you are so inspiring to me. Thanks so much for sharing that you are standing on the treadmill as you write here! šāāļø āļø You got this! So proud of you for taking care of your health. Baby steps, right? I did a barre class today and I know I will be FEELING it tomorrow!! ā¤ļø
Nice! I have a friend who loves barre classes. I just looked into joining one, but the closest studio is several miles away (by the time I got there, I would need to turn around š¤Ŗ). I guess they have online classes too, which sounds more doable.
Chilly and cold here in Michigan too! My boys had a snow day Friday and a day off today for MLK, so the house has been full of life. While I love it, I look forward to the quiet days working from home as well. I do like how the cold keeps us nestled in and forces us to slow down a little.
Last week was nice and slow for me. My husband fell ill with covid so we all stayed home just in case. My girls and I were spared (or at least as of today) and had a blast doing fun homey things--baking, painting, reading, splashing in the garden, feeding our fish.
Kay, thanks for your entry and invitation to connect. I especially resonated with what you shared here: āI am a woman who loves trees, feeding the birds, and letting part of my property become re-wilded (turned into a meadow and woods) and my husband is, tooā¦ā
I too love gardens that are allowed to grow a little wild. It enlivens me in all the best ways. š
Hi Sim!! Thanks for your share here! Iām so glad that we have connected on Substack, and that the invitation to reflect and share spoke to you. I loved reading in your comment that A) you were spared (so far) from getting COVID, and B) that you and your family did homey things! š”...I would love to hear more about these cozy and creative activities (and to learn your fishes name?)... I will head over to your blog to see whatās new there this week, as well! Hope you have a lovely week ahead, Sim! šāØ
Thank you for the shout-out, Kay! My household is less crowded than yours. One little throw-up by my kitty, but mercifully it was in the basement. Your DSW story: as my mother-in-law used to say, āThis, too, will pass.ā You handled it beautifully. And were able to focus on the important things. Sledding. Soup. Seeing the absurd and the ridiculous and writing about it.
Winter finally arrived. It wasnāt pleasant. But it was normal. Thought I could go out without gloves or a hat. Should know better. Waiting for the bus when I was in seventh grade and wearing a miniskirt and the real air temperature without windchill was -37 should have taught me. Oh well.
Haha! Mary!!! Thank you for your thoughtful and encouraging comments - and the check in about your week! Firstly, you have a kitty! šāā¬ whatās his or her name? I love learning about my friendsā pets. Pets are such a precious pet of our lives, and Iām sure your kitty loves you so much. ā¤ļø
Thank you for saying that I handled the DSW mess so well. That means a lot to me and feels great to hear coming from you. šš» And yes, it felt good to write about the harrowing aspects of my weekend, and also to celebrate the beautiful and happy moments. To hold both - that is the challenge and the beauty, I think. I love the throw back to your own middle school memories! š
Being a mom is hard. There were so many times I just wanted to leave my kids on a doorstep, ring the bell, and run away.
If youāre interested in learning about my kitty, I wrote a post, āThe Thousand Dollar Haircutā thatās on my site. Mini is with me right now. Aging quickly, but still really sweet.ā¤ļø
š I'm not a big fan of the cold lol The snow looks nice and fun but when I'm in the cold, my body is not happy! I have to go up north soon in the snow and cold and these pre-thoughts are not helping lol. The cold desert nights is my limit. But I hope everyone is feelin better!
Ahhh! I hear ya! The cold can be brutal! Do you have cozy and warm clothes to take with you when you go up North soon? I do love cold desert nights, the air is so dry and the starts are so bright (Iām thinking like WA, CO, NM, AZ). When you go north do you head to the mountains? āØāļøāļø
Oh my gosh the vomit/pee clown car. I am so there with you. We have a 4 year old and 2 cats and the amount of poop and vomit in one single morning Iām tending to feels like a bit and not my actual life. So glad we found each other here šš
Whew! Girl! What a week you've had. Last week went pretty well. Highlights: meatloaf I made from beef from a farm I but from and seeing my nephew eat multiple helpings. He usually doesn't eat much real food at all. I also didn't work Saturday at the coffee shop and made two whole chickens, one on stove and in slow cooker. I shredded them both. This may seem simple but it's a huge deal for me. A win. I hope to write a personal essay called The Chicken, which will tell the story of a failed chicken in college and then end with these chickens. Also from farm. I homeschool my kids and have recently started teaching my niece and nephew as well, just til the end of school year and last week went very well. They know have Covid. Today we enjoyed a nice snowy day and had an interesting convo with the kids about who MLK was. They were surprised to learn his daughter is still alive. That it hasn't been 100 years since he was assassinated. My kids are 7, 6, 4 and 2.
Hi Laura! Loved reading about your week here. The two whole chickens you made on Saturday sounded DELICIOUS, and I bet once they were shredded they made for some yummy meals! What kind of meals do you make from the shredded chicken? Usually when I do shredded chicken in the slow cooker I add BBQ sauce and then we have sloppy joes on buns. :) I can't wait to read your essay (The Chicken) when you get around to it! ....so cool that you homeschool your kiddos (and now your nephew and niece). I really admire that lifestyle and my husband was homeschooled growing up. What kinds of aspects of MLK's life and journey did you share with your kids? We talked to ours about his bravery to do what was right despite it being not mainstream or popular yet...we have another snowy day here in NJ...how's the weather where you are today? ....sending you love and light, Laura!
Yes, that's usually what we would make too. So far we've had chicken quesadillas and Mac and cheese with chicken in it. I used chickpea pasta. Regarding MLK, my husband gave a brief overview of black history in America, starting with slavery. Then he talked about what racism is and how even after the civil war, some people didn't believe blacks should live a normal life, doing all the things they did as citizens. He shared his MLK led a movement to change that and sacrificed his life for that. We did share that he was assassinated. We ended on note of how he and those like him helped make our family possible. My kids are biracial. We are an interracial couple and we explained that used to be illegal and frowned upon. So yeah, we got into it a bit. š I love that you noted his bravery. So true.
YUM! chicken quesadillas and mac and cheese with chicken in it? I am coming over, pull me up a seat please! :))
Ahhhh, I love hearing this. Thanks for answering and explaining how you shared about MLK's impact and legacy. Also, really appreciate you sharing that you and your husband are an interracial couple and that your children are biracial. And how you tied together at the end by explaining how MLK's sacrifices helped make the family you have today possible. I'm really humbled that you shared that on here with me/this thread. Beautiful.
Hello :) thank you for bringing us together and for the enthusiastic shout-out. I hope yāall are still enjoying the snow, despite all the sick. A bit of fun mixed in always makes me feel better.
It was a lovely week (thanks for asking)- filled with lots of firsts (Iām a newbie mom with a five month old). Every time I think Iāve figured this little guy out, he changes it up on me - growing so fast and changing so quickly.
Enjoy your week ahead!
Ps. The asterisks around snow made me smile :) so clever!
Hi JH! I'm so glad we've connected on Substack. Thanks for reading about my week and sharing a bit about yours. Very cool that you're a newbie Mom! Yes, I totally remember those early months and as you said, you think you've figured out your little one and then he goes and changes on you! Ha! ...well, so glad you are here, and thanks for appreciating the snow asterisks! Look forward to continuing to support one another! - Kay
Hey :) you can call me, Jordan. I need to update some things on here!
Thank you for the new motherhood encouragement - such a beautiful and wild ride already. Iām so looking forward to reading more of your stories and about your weeks and days as a mom. And cheers to supporting one another.
Last week was exhausting. My new coteacher Parigul and I both caught a cold from our babies in our class, but she called out Tuesday and Wednesday, and I was a lot better by Monday after feeling sick on Saturday night/Sunday with an extremely runny nose, so it was much harder not having her with me, especially since one baby had a stomach virus which put me in ratio with 5 babies. While I had some help from other coworkers there was a lot of āwell the ratio is 1:5 so technically you can be by yourself.ā And on Tuesday we left at 3 pm because there was a terrible storm that was hitting in the afternoon so many centers closed early for safety concerns. On Friday, we had 6 babies, and Parigul spent more time with the 5 month old who is the fussiest, so that was helpful.
At home my husband was busy because he had his promotional process to try to get Sergeant so he had a board interview on Tuesday and a practical scenario on Wednesday. We found out he made the top 3 (the chief will pick 2 to promote out of those 3) on Thursday, and he met with the chief on Friday- fingers crossed he gets promoted. He was a Sergeant when he worked for a larger department (and he ultimately worked for that police department for nearly 15 years), but he took a pay cut and has been working for the last two years to get to the point where he could be a sergeant again because he wanted so badly to work for our local police department (5 minutes from our house).
My 4 year old daughter was in her usual routine (school, dinner, Magic School Bus, bedtime routine) for most of the week, but on Friday she was in a mood at school when we got there and apparently also had a meltdown and ended up missing half of her first Soccer Shots class. Even at home she was yelling at me on Friday night when I told her she needed to take a bath (she calmed down once she got in and played with some fish bath toys), so I think she was just tired.
My sister Elizabeth and I worked together this week on a Substack post about our dad after getting very fired up reading about the episode of Gilmore Girls where Christopher finally decided to show up for Parentsā Weekend Roryās senior year of college. Our dad was very involved in our lives despite working a lot, and it was fun reminiscing about how he used to listen to us describe the plots of the books we were reading and proofread our papers, and of course was a part of the Pit Crew for marching band.
I am hoping this week is easier overall and that I donāt have to have those single ratio moments as much at work- I have had 5 babies where I could do it alone without much trouble, but these 5 are not the same (the age range is just too wide with 5-12 month olds). Supposedly a new baby is supposed to start soon, so we will see if mom gets the paperwork in for her to start this week.
Thanks so much for your share, Laura. Really enjoyed reading it, and also loved the article you and Elizabeth co-wrote about your Dad. Such evocative memories and you tied it in to the Gilmore Girls perspective nicely, too. I can relate to what you wrote about your 4 yo being "in a mood" Friday, that just happens sometimes with our kiddos, right? I'm glad the bath was calming for her. I've noticed that nights when we give our kids a bath or shower (we don't do it every night) they seem to fall asleep faster. I think that physiologically the warm water is calming and makes transition into bedtime and eventual sleep, smoother. Thanks again for your response here. How's this week going? We have snow and ice today....
Aw man not vomiting!! We have had colds here and it just felt like a week but Iām hopeful we are coming out of the other side!!
We are near London (UK) and Iām really hoping we donāt get snow!! Iām not a fan. We donāt really prepare for it very well so it all tends to go wrong if it comes. Your snow looked idyllic though. 6 hours of entertainment for the kids seems ideal šš»
Thank you for the shout-out! My week has been okay. Iām still standing on the treadmill as I type this. My cholesterol and so forth are currently in the gutter. Iām still processing those lab results and trying just to move each day :).
Hi Margaret!! On my gosh, you are so inspiring to me. Thanks so much for sharing that you are standing on the treadmill as you write here! šāāļø āļø You got this! So proud of you for taking care of your health. Baby steps, right? I did a barre class today and I know I will be FEELING it tomorrow!! ā¤ļø
Nice! I have a friend who loves barre classes. I just looked into joining one, but the closest studio is several miles away (by the time I got there, I would need to turn around š¤Ŗ). I guess they have online classes too, which sounds more doable.
Chilly and cold here in Michigan too! My boys had a snow day Friday and a day off today for MLK, so the house has been full of life. While I love it, I look forward to the quiet days working from home as well. I do like how the cold keeps us nestled in and forces us to slow down a little.
Last week was nice and slow for me. My husband fell ill with covid so we all stayed home just in case. My girls and I were spared (or at least as of today) and had a blast doing fun homey things--baking, painting, reading, splashing in the garden, feeding our fish.
Kay, thanks for your entry and invitation to connect. I especially resonated with what you shared here: āI am a woman who loves trees, feeding the birds, and letting part of my property become re-wilded (turned into a meadow and woods) and my husband is, tooā¦ā
I too love gardens that are allowed to grow a little wild. It enlivens me in all the best ways. š
Hi Sim!! Thanks for your share here! Iām so glad that we have connected on Substack, and that the invitation to reflect and share spoke to you. I loved reading in your comment that A) you were spared (so far) from getting COVID, and B) that you and your family did homey things! š”...I would love to hear more about these cozy and creative activities (and to learn your fishes name?)... I will head over to your blog to see whatās new there this week, as well! Hope you have a lovely week ahead, Sim! šāØ
Thank you for the shout-out, Kay! My household is less crowded than yours. One little throw-up by my kitty, but mercifully it was in the basement. Your DSW story: as my mother-in-law used to say, āThis, too, will pass.ā You handled it beautifully. And were able to focus on the important things. Sledding. Soup. Seeing the absurd and the ridiculous and writing about it.
Winter finally arrived. It wasnāt pleasant. But it was normal. Thought I could go out without gloves or a hat. Should know better. Waiting for the bus when I was in seventh grade and wearing a miniskirt and the real air temperature without windchill was -37 should have taught me. Oh well.
Haha! Mary!!! Thank you for your thoughtful and encouraging comments - and the check in about your week! Firstly, you have a kitty! šāā¬ whatās his or her name? I love learning about my friendsā pets. Pets are such a precious pet of our lives, and Iām sure your kitty loves you so much. ā¤ļø
Thank you for saying that I handled the DSW mess so well. That means a lot to me and feels great to hear coming from you. šš» And yes, it felt good to write about the harrowing aspects of my weekend, and also to celebrate the beautiful and happy moments. To hold both - that is the challenge and the beauty, I think. I love the throw back to your own middle school memories! š
Being a mom is hard. There were so many times I just wanted to leave my kids on a doorstep, ring the bell, and run away.
If youāre interested in learning about my kitty, I wrote a post, āThe Thousand Dollar Haircutā thatās on my site. Mini is with me right now. Aging quickly, but still really sweet.ā¤ļø
š I'm not a big fan of the cold lol The snow looks nice and fun but when I'm in the cold, my body is not happy! I have to go up north soon in the snow and cold and these pre-thoughts are not helping lol. The cold desert nights is my limit. But I hope everyone is feelin better!
Ahhh! I hear ya! The cold can be brutal! Do you have cozy and warm clothes to take with you when you go up North soon? I do love cold desert nights, the air is so dry and the starts are so bright (Iām thinking like WA, CO, NM, AZ). When you go north do you head to the mountains? āØāļøāļø
I have a few warm clothes but not enough lol. No mountains I will be going out the state š
Oh my gosh the vomit/pee clown car. I am so there with you. We have a 4 year old and 2 cats and the amount of poop and vomit in one single morning Iām tending to feels like a bit and not my actual life. So glad we found each other here šš
Ha!! Too funny, yup sounds correct. LOL! I'm glad to have connected with you, too, Kaitlyn!!! Looking forward to more laughs (and tears?).... :)
Oh, most definitely. The only way.
Whew! Girl! What a week you've had. Last week went pretty well. Highlights: meatloaf I made from beef from a farm I but from and seeing my nephew eat multiple helpings. He usually doesn't eat much real food at all. I also didn't work Saturday at the coffee shop and made two whole chickens, one on stove and in slow cooker. I shredded them both. This may seem simple but it's a huge deal for me. A win. I hope to write a personal essay called The Chicken, which will tell the story of a failed chicken in college and then end with these chickens. Also from farm. I homeschool my kids and have recently started teaching my niece and nephew as well, just til the end of school year and last week went very well. They know have Covid. Today we enjoyed a nice snowy day and had an interesting convo with the kids about who MLK was. They were surprised to learn his daughter is still alive. That it hasn't been 100 years since he was assassinated. My kids are 7, 6, 4 and 2.
Hi Laura! Loved reading about your week here. The two whole chickens you made on Saturday sounded DELICIOUS, and I bet once they were shredded they made for some yummy meals! What kind of meals do you make from the shredded chicken? Usually when I do shredded chicken in the slow cooker I add BBQ sauce and then we have sloppy joes on buns. :) I can't wait to read your essay (The Chicken) when you get around to it! ....so cool that you homeschool your kiddos (and now your nephew and niece). I really admire that lifestyle and my husband was homeschooled growing up. What kinds of aspects of MLK's life and journey did you share with your kids? We talked to ours about his bravery to do what was right despite it being not mainstream or popular yet...we have another snowy day here in NJ...how's the weather where you are today? ....sending you love and light, Laura!
Yes, that's usually what we would make too. So far we've had chicken quesadillas and Mac and cheese with chicken in it. I used chickpea pasta. Regarding MLK, my husband gave a brief overview of black history in America, starting with slavery. Then he talked about what racism is and how even after the civil war, some people didn't believe blacks should live a normal life, doing all the things they did as citizens. He shared his MLK led a movement to change that and sacrificed his life for that. We did share that he was assassinated. We ended on note of how he and those like him helped make our family possible. My kids are biracial. We are an interracial couple and we explained that used to be illegal and frowned upon. So yeah, we got into it a bit. š I love that you noted his bravery. So true.
YUM! chicken quesadillas and mac and cheese with chicken in it? I am coming over, pull me up a seat please! :))
Ahhhh, I love hearing this. Thanks for answering and explaining how you shared about MLK's impact and legacy. Also, really appreciate you sharing that you and your husband are an interracial couple and that your children are biracial. And how you tied together at the end by explaining how MLK's sacrifices helped make the family you have today possible. I'm really humbled that you shared that on here with me/this thread. Beautiful.
Hello :) thank you for bringing us together and for the enthusiastic shout-out. I hope yāall are still enjoying the snow, despite all the sick. A bit of fun mixed in always makes me feel better.
It was a lovely week (thanks for asking)- filled with lots of firsts (Iām a newbie mom with a five month old). Every time I think Iāve figured this little guy out, he changes it up on me - growing so fast and changing so quickly.
Enjoy your week ahead!
Ps. The asterisks around snow made me smile :) so clever!
Hi JH! I'm so glad we've connected on Substack. Thanks for reading about my week and sharing a bit about yours. Very cool that you're a newbie Mom! Yes, I totally remember those early months and as you said, you think you've figured out your little one and then he goes and changes on you! Ha! ...well, so glad you are here, and thanks for appreciating the snow asterisks! Look forward to continuing to support one another! - Kay
Hey :) you can call me, Jordan. I need to update some things on here!
Thank you for the new motherhood encouragement - such a beautiful and wild ride already. Iām so looking forward to reading more of your stories and about your weeks and days as a mom. And cheers to supporting one another.
Cheers, Jordan! Me too!
Youāve had quite a week - on both ends of the spectrum! So glad you enjoyed my post, I truly appreciate the shoutout.
Ahh! Yes it was! ....you are most welcome my friend! :))
Last week was exhausting. My new coteacher Parigul and I both caught a cold from our babies in our class, but she called out Tuesday and Wednesday, and I was a lot better by Monday after feeling sick on Saturday night/Sunday with an extremely runny nose, so it was much harder not having her with me, especially since one baby had a stomach virus which put me in ratio with 5 babies. While I had some help from other coworkers there was a lot of āwell the ratio is 1:5 so technically you can be by yourself.ā And on Tuesday we left at 3 pm because there was a terrible storm that was hitting in the afternoon so many centers closed early for safety concerns. On Friday, we had 6 babies, and Parigul spent more time with the 5 month old who is the fussiest, so that was helpful.
At home my husband was busy because he had his promotional process to try to get Sergeant so he had a board interview on Tuesday and a practical scenario on Wednesday. We found out he made the top 3 (the chief will pick 2 to promote out of those 3) on Thursday, and he met with the chief on Friday- fingers crossed he gets promoted. He was a Sergeant when he worked for a larger department (and he ultimately worked for that police department for nearly 15 years), but he took a pay cut and has been working for the last two years to get to the point where he could be a sergeant again because he wanted so badly to work for our local police department (5 minutes from our house).
My 4 year old daughter was in her usual routine (school, dinner, Magic School Bus, bedtime routine) for most of the week, but on Friday she was in a mood at school when we got there and apparently also had a meltdown and ended up missing half of her first Soccer Shots class. Even at home she was yelling at me on Friday night when I told her she needed to take a bath (she calmed down once she got in and played with some fish bath toys), so I think she was just tired.
My sister Elizabeth and I worked together this week on a Substack post about our dad after getting very fired up reading about the episode of Gilmore Girls where Christopher finally decided to show up for Parentsā Weekend Roryās senior year of college. Our dad was very involved in our lives despite working a lot, and it was fun reminiscing about how he used to listen to us describe the plots of the books we were reading and proofread our papers, and of course was a part of the Pit Crew for marching band.
I am hoping this week is easier overall and that I donāt have to have those single ratio moments as much at work- I have had 5 babies where I could do it alone without much trouble, but these 5 are not the same (the age range is just too wide with 5-12 month olds). Supposedly a new baby is supposed to start soon, so we will see if mom gets the paperwork in for her to start this week.
Thanks so much for your share, Laura. Really enjoyed reading it, and also loved the article you and Elizabeth co-wrote about your Dad. Such evocative memories and you tied it in to the Gilmore Girls perspective nicely, too. I can relate to what you wrote about your 4 yo being "in a mood" Friday, that just happens sometimes with our kiddos, right? I'm glad the bath was calming for her. I've noticed that nights when we give our kids a bath or shower (we don't do it every night) they seem to fall asleep faster. I think that physiologically the warm water is calming and makes transition into bedtime and eventual sleep, smoother. Thanks again for your response here. How's this week going? We have snow and ice today....
We had a new baby today so that was hectic, but otherwise okay so far!
Aw man not vomiting!! We have had colds here and it just felt like a week but Iām hopeful we are coming out of the other side!!
We are near London (UK) and Iām really hoping we donāt get snow!! Iām not a fan. We donāt really prepare for it very well so it all tends to go wrong if it comes. Your snow looked idyllic though. 6 hours of entertainment for the kids seems ideal šš»